Eurasian Economic Union to opt for single currency: Nazarbayev

Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev thinks that the Eurasian Economic Union that will be created between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus will have to have a new single currency, different from the Rusian Ruble, Interfax-Kazakhstan reports. “I think that no national currency, including the powerful ruble, will by fit. There should be a new name, a different currency,” Nazarbayev said in Moscow. According to Kazakhstan President, this is “to be done in future”. “We were not talking about it today. Integration union starts this way: free trade zone is created first, then the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space followed by an economic union. The currency is created afterwards,” Nazarbayev said. He thinks that it is necessary to “create an economic space, the Eurasian Economic Union, first, and then think about currency”. But according to Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan can already trade with Russia using rubles and tenge. “The basis for this is already being created for major trade items,” Kazakhstan President noted. He said that he visited a dealing center of VTB Capital bank with presidents of Russia and Belarus. “As we were told, 600-800 million of Kazakhstan tenge are being transferred via VTB bank daily, i.e. tenge is second after ruble. When we trade with each other, ruble and tenge have to be used, and there is no need to buy US Dollars first to pay for commodities,” President said. Nazarbayev is convinced that “this is the first step”. “We need to make sure that our economic space and union are profitability and provides equal opportunities, that the issue of single currency will emerge very naturally,” Kazakhstan President stressed.